Contending Issues in the Niger Delta Crisis of Nigeria - Journal of ...

Clement Odiri Obagbinoko
5. There were separate regional judiciaries and the power of the
Regions to
establish , not only High courts, but also Regional Courts
of Appeal.
6. The Regions had their own separate electoral commissions
for regional and local government elections. However, the
chairman of he Federal Electoral Commission was the
statutory chairman of the state commission.
7. The revenue allocation system under the 1963 constitution
was strictly based on derivation. (Sagay, 2000: 9-10)
This was the setting before the discovery of crude oil in
commercial quantity in the early 1970s. and since then revenue
sharing formula has been subjected to numerous alterations and
modifications. Intriguingly, shares of the state governments out of
allocable revenues in any given year or period was determined by the
volume of the revenues to be shared, (not the volume of revenue
derived), and the sharing formula structure of the Nigerian federation
at that point in time. (Philips, 1980:159). Consequently, revenue
sharing pattern became so inconsistent, rash and irrational. For
example, up to 1966 and particularly between 1954 and 1959, the
principle of derivation was the major criterion of revenue sharing
among the states/regions. But by 1975, the derivation principle has
disappeared and given way to another improved system.
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